A Thunderstorm Tale
by sneakykid
Summary: A thunderstorm rolls into town as Elena writes in her journal. Something is wrong, though. Very simple. Oneshot.


AN: Normally I don't do oneshots, but I had inspiration. :)

Splat. A raindrop landed on her papers. Elena had the window open, enjoying the Febreeze-fresh evening air cleanse her stale room. The breeze moved about the area, lifting the dust and musty smells of a room left to itself for too long. Elena wasn't at her desk, though. She was propped up against her bedstead, writing in her journal, enjoying the tranquil sound of silence. She had had enough of the noise. Everyone wants their kindergarten-old quiet time every now and then. Even the scratching of her pen on the journal paper was starting to become bothersome, yet the sound still retained its odd effect to put Elena at ease because she was venting her thoughts, clearing her head.

The ruffling of the homework on the desk snatched Elena's attention to the outdoors. The papers were starting to flutter away from the desk. The sky was a gloomy shade of gray like highway tar. Elena quickly cast her journal aside as she got up and closed the window. She got down on all fours to retrieve her scattered papers from under the desk and by the bed and wherever else they had fallen.

Aunt Jenna was out, doing who knows what. Shopping? Drinking? On a date? So long as Jenna had her cell phone and a vervain-filled necklace, Elena was not terribly concerned. Jeremy, on the other hand, was working late at the library with some group for some class for school. They had a big speech they had to prepare for or something. Elena had been too preoccupied to catch the miniscule details.

The inevitable rain, slow to start off, started slapping the window as if to say "I'm here!" The trees outside were rustling against one other, moving as fluidly and as randomly as if they were dancing with the fan-like wind. The house creaked, groaned. Elena neatly put her papers back in order, tapped them onto her lap to straighten them out, and grabbed hold of the desk as she propped herself up. The unfinished homework went back into a quickly-forgotten pile. She had better things to do.

Elena stood in the center of her room, hands on her hips, surveying for no reason, her mind wrapped up in...nothing. It felt good to have no big situations to deal with at the moment. Elena briskly moved to look out her window. The sky had definitely darkened and the rain was no help either. She was hoping it was just a sprinkle of rain, not a waterfall.

"Great. A storm." she groaned to herself. The weather was picking up in intensity. No longer was it perfect, cozy Mayberry outside, but Kansas before a tornado. The rain chinked at the window, sounding like a bucket of ice being deposited into an empty cooler.

Elena felt her pockets, making sure she had her phone. She took it out, making sure it was on and that she had all her batteries.

BOOM!

Elena was startled. She gasped and dropped her phone. She darted down to pick it up like a ninja. It was in three pieces, though. The stupid battery had fallen out.

The light flashed from the window. Then the gunshot of thunder sent Elena jumping again. She quickly put her phone back together and punched in Stefan's number--number 1--using speed dial.

Elena _hated_ thunderstorms when she was alone. Her dad used to come into her room, snuggle with her in bed, and read her _Cinderella_ or sing to her until she drifted to sleep, feeling safe and secure with her daddy there to brave the evil storm.

Ring. Ring.

Ring. Ring.

_ Gosh, what's taking Stefan so long?_

"Why, hello, Elena." a voice slyly answered.

"Damon," Elena replied breathlessly. "Where's Stefan?"

"He's off...brooding about global warming and other forces he can't control." Damon said. Elena could hear his smirk.

"Ha ha. That's not funny." Elena retorted dryly. Damon could practically hear her rolling her eyes. "Seriously, may I speak with him?"

"He's not in at the moment, ma'am, may I take a message?"

"Are you Stefan's secretary now? You're always answering his phone." Elena noted aloud to him. She started pacing around the room.

"Maybe I just enjoy the sound of your voice..." Damon paused. Elena fought a smile. "As it grinds its way through my ears."

"Hey!" Elena looked at herself in the mirror. She looked panicked, yet calm.

"Stefan is out. Killing innocent, soft, fluffy bunnies and kittens."

"When will he be back?" Elena dropped onto her bed.

"Pff. How should I know? I'm not his secretary."

"Fine. Well, can you tell him to come over to my place as soon as he gets back?" Elena grabbed a velvety pillow and absentmindedly started petting it.

Damon didn't answer.

"Damon?"

"What's wrong?"

Elena blushed a little. "Nothing. I just, um, miss him." Elena's cringed and her voice gave her away as clap of thunder roared through the town.

"...Are you afraid of storms?" Damon sounded amused.

"No!" Elena said a bit too defensively.

"Mhm." Damon replied, skeptical. "Well, I'll tell Stefan, if and when he comes back, to sneak over to your house to snuggle with you."

"Thanks," Elena said, smiling, relieved, and a little uneasy. They both hung up. Who bothers with goodbyes anymore?

It had been a good five minutes. Elena tried to calm herself down by playing some CD she used to really love, but the power momentarily went out twice, and she gave up.

Tap, tap, tap.

The rain was streaming down her window outside. It reminded her of rainy scenes on films. Stefan's black leather jacket was difficult to see in the darkness outside. Elena yanked open her window.

"Stefan! I was getting worried." Elena cooed. It was Damon (surprise!). He appeared from the window to standing in the middle of the floor using his vampire speed.

"Oh! Does my forehead have brood all over it? I'll have to iron it when I get back home." Damon replied sarcastically. He would.

"Damon. Why are you here? And why didn't you use the front door?" Elena inquired, arms crossed as she prepared for cross-examination. Elena had failed to notice how Damon had shut the window, but it was irrelevant. She sat on her bed.

"First, Stefan likes to take his time when hunting and it will be an especially difficult night to hunt since many of the animals will be seeking shelter to avoid the rain. So he's probably not returning until the storm has passed."

"But-"

"And the front door is so overrated." He observed, his blue eyes piercing hers, holding them, as he moved closer. He sat down by her on the bed, farther away from the window, a hand's length away from her.

"A warning would've been nice." She readjusted her body so they weren't _as_ uncomfortably close and so she could face him more easily. She brushed her hair behind her ears, then pulled her legs up and sat cross-legged.

With the sound of a homerun ball hitting an aluminum bat, the thunder crashed. Elena jumped, her face embarrassed and terrified.

"It's just thunder, Elena." Damon tried his hand at comforting. He patted her knee, physical contact for reassurance.

"I know, but-" Elena broke off and looked away, avoiding eye contact. She was uncomfortable. "Something about it is...frightening."

"Says the girl who has a vampire boyfriend." Damon said, as though it were a sidenote. Elena gave him an amused "be serious" look, and then continued looking away. She sighed, then told him what her father used to do. Damon's eyes turned sympathetic, the only change in his facial expression. He took off his jacket and dropped it to the floor.

The thunder boomed in rows. Elena huddled closer to herself, ashamed of feeling so weak.

"Elena." Damon said. No response.

"Elena." Damon said more forcefully. She looked up. "Come here." He opened his arms, slightly.

Elena's puppy dog brown eyes gazed warily up at him. She had a moment of hesitation, then moved closer. Damon was holding Elena in a hug, petting her hair, whispering how it was going to be okay. Elena just hugged him back, grateful for such a _friend_. Her mind tasted the word and spat it back out. It didn't go with Damon. Elena's chin rested on Damon's shoulder as he held her in his strong embrace. It wasn't as careful as Stefan's hugs. Damon was actually holding her to him, making it impossible for her to escape. He was as strong as an ox, yet being held uncomfortably close was what she needed. It reminded her of her dad. How protective he was.

Elena couldn't remember letting go of Damon, breaking free of his safe grip, nor could she recall whimpering when he stood up and said he should leave. She did, however, remember them talking through the storm, bringing up past adventures and swapping water-related stories. Her head had started to droop against the bedstead once the eye of the storm was passing by, relieved for the silence of thunder and rain. Damon had insisted she lay down, but Elena refused.

"I'm fine," she kept telling him. She was as stubborn as he was.

Eventually, Damon was the one doing all the talking and Elena had fallen asleep, head resting against the wall, and was softly snoring.

"...and the mask shattered. So naturally the people stopped dancing to gawk. Elena?" Damon was speaking quietly. He stared at the girl in front of him. How vulnerable she seemed at the moment. It was a complete 180 from her everyday demandings. She looked serene, at peace. Not like the kind in death, heaven's no. Damon had seen enough death to know that Elena was the opposite of death. She was life. She always seemed to surprise and drag some redeeming quality or another from him, jumpstarting his heart again.

Damon easily picked up Elena and actually laid her in bed, slowly covering her up as not to wake her. He moved her hair from her face, and then turned around to leave through the way he came in.

"Damon," Elena mumbled. It was so quiet Damon was wondering if he had imagined it. He spun around as though he had been casually changing direction. He now knelt by Elena's bed and wrapped one arm around her in a long, comforting hug. Her brow unfurrowed soon enough. Damon moved to pull away and leave, for real this time. He found Elena had managed to intertwine their fingers of his left hand.

Damon felt as though he were watching the scene from a dream or watching a movie of himself as he leaned forward and pressed his lips to Elena's hand and gently pried her fingers from his. Damon stood up yet again and leaned over in a balance-on-one-leg motion to grab his jacket from the floor. He shoved his arms through. It smelled like Elena from being in her room for so long. Damon slipped out through the window, wondering if Stefan would be back by the time he arrived home.

The storm had passed outside. It was now just dark. And early into the morning.


End file.
